Analogs of Ridge Skin and Papillary Patterns in the Nature and the Significance of Their Study for Forensic Science and Forensic Examination

Patterns similar to the papillary patterns of human fingers, palms, and soles can be found in living and inanimate nature. Studying such patterns and the structure of the ridged skin of humans and primates in comparison with similar formations on other objects is necessary for forensic science, forensic traceology, fingerprinting, and biometric identification. The article analyzes the history of the study of the ridged skin of humans, primates, and other animals by forensic scientists, zoologists, anthropologists, and representatives of other sciences.The author proposes systemizing and classifying the information about the analogs of papillary patterns and ridged skin on such grounds as the genus and type of carrier objects, relief structure, degree of comparability with the papillary pattern of human hands and soles.The article presents the most indicative varieties of analogs of papillary patterns in mammals, birds, fish, insects, corals, plants, and fungi. The author has studied and systemized structural features of the striped pattern of the skin of tigers and zebras, crests and stripes in corals, stripes and ridged patterns in fish. The data obtained on ridge formations, which are similar in structure and shape to the papillary patterns of human fingers and palms, will help to avoid expert errors during fingerprinting examination or erroneous placement of images of such formations in forensic databases.Knowledge of the structural features and properties of striped patterns of skins of specially protected wild animals, as well as the crest surface of paleontological museum objects, should be used for their identification by photo and video images in cases of embezzlement, smuggling, illegal hunting, and illegal trafficking.

STUDY OF THE RELIEF AND COASTLINE DYNAMICS OF LARGE COASTAL ACCUMULATIVE FORMS ACCORDING TO REMOTE SENSING DATA

The study of the relief of large coastal accumulative forms, based on modern technologies, is rele-vant for solving many applied problems. Coastal and underwater bars, shoals, banks are characteristic elements of large coastal accumulative forms’ geosystems. Previously existing methods of relief re-searches, especially underwater, were labor-intensive and expensive. Accordingly, the development and implementation of new methods of geographical research are necessary. The Dolgaya Spit, includ-ing its underwater shoal and the Elenin Bank, is one of the largest accumulative forms of the Sea of Azov. The purpose of our work was to obtain new information on the relief structure and the shoreline dynamics of the Dolgaya Spit based on the use of new research methods. Digital models of surface and underwater relief were built on the basis of processing Sentinel-2 satellite images and data from unmanned aerial photography. The subsequent analysis allowed identify regularities that reflect the current and previous hydro-lithodynamic conditions that determined the transformation of the Dolgaya Spit during its evolution. The fulfilled studies confirmed the possibility of successful use of modern remote methods for studying the relief of coastal accumulative forms.

The Role of Environmental Factors in the Formation of Soil Cover Structure of the Zeyamchay Basin

The Zayamchay basin is selected by its complex structure, various climatic conditions, rich vegetation and soil–rich rocks. This variation of soil–forming factors has led to the formation of various forms of soil cover structure within the basin. Therefore, the study of land and its space manifestation — the soil cover structure, detail mapping, evaluation and optimization — both scientifically–theoretical and practical. The Zeyamchay basin, which is located on the north–western slope of the Lesser Caucasus, is the object of the research. The Zeyamchay basin is selected by its complex relief structure, various climatic conditions, rich vegetation and soil–rich rocks. The area of the basin is 94200 hectares. The basin covers part of Tovuz, Shamkir and Gadabay districts from the administrative point of view. These kind of soil–forming factors have led to the formation of different forms of soil cover structure within the basin. During the research, empirical information is collected from cartographic, soil research, aerospace, landscape and geomorphological methods and so on was used.

Antifouling and Fouling-Release Performance of Photo-Embossed Fluorogel Elastomers

Oil-infused ‘slippery’ polymer surfaces and engineered surface textures have been separately shown to reduce settlement or adhesion strength of marine biofouling organisms. Here, we combine these two approaches in fluorogel surfaces infused with perfluorinated oils, via a facile photo-embossing method that allows the generation of a micro-scale surface relief structure while retaining the properties of lubricant-infused materials. Testing of these surfaces against a range of marine fouling challenges in laboratory assays demonstrated that when the volume percentage of perfluorinated oil was high, adhesion strengths of attached barnacles and biofilms were low. However, diatoms adhered strongly to test surfaces, highlighting the need to explore different combinations of polymer and oil for such surfaces. Furthermore, the tested surface structures increased settlement and adhesion in the assays, demonstrating the need to optimize any surface structure for specific applications. Nevertheless, the results show the feasibility of combining multiple approaches to create future antifouling technologies.